The invention described here may be made, used and licensed by the or for the U.S. Government for governmental purposes without paying me any royalty.
Robotic vehicles have long been studied by military organizations because they provide a way to accomplish dangerous missions without risk to human life. For example, robotic vehicles have been developed for mine clearing and recovery of unexploded artillery shells on firing ranges. Another duty that could be advantageously performed by robotic vehicles is recovery of stranded vehicles in a battle space. Such duty not only involves risks of land mines and enemy fire, but could also involve the risks presented by nuclear, biological and chemical warfare. For the robotic vehicle to recover other vehicles it needs a mechanism to adjust the position of a lunette, hook, pintle or like towing hardware once it has arrived in front of the stranded vehicle. It also needs a mechanism to detect whether the positioning of the hardware is proceeding as desired and whether a successful connection with the stranded vehicle has occurred. My invention comprises an electro-hydraulic towing assembly that manipulates the aforementioned towing hardware into connection with complementary hardware of a vehicle to be towed. My invention also has means to monitor and control the towing assembly""s operation.
The towing assembly includes a lunette or other hitching element connected to a primary hydraulic cylinder. Actuating the cylinder moves the lunette closer or further from a complimentary hitching element on another vehicle. The cylinder is mounted to a post so that it has two degrees of rotational freedom. Thus, the cylinder can swing up and down in a vertical plane or can swing side-to-side in a horizontal plane in order to move the lunette to a desired position. The side-to-side swinging motion of the cylinder is accomplished by a reversible electric motor mechanically connected, directly or indirectly, to the cylinder. The vertical swinging of the primary cylinder is accomplished by a secondary hydraulic cylinder connected thereto. The post is translatable along a guideway so that the post and cylinder can be moved together closer or further from the hitching element on the other vehicle. The translation of the post and cylinder is done by a motor mechanically connected to the post.
The overall invention, of which the towing assembly is part, has a camera on the robotic vehicle. The camera views the towing assembly and sends video signals to a human operator at a station remote from the robotic vehicle, whereby the operator can monitor the assembly""s operation. The station has input devices, such as joysticks or levers, whose manipulation results in signals that control the operation of the motors and cylinder. By using the camera and the input devices, the operator can keep using the towing assembly to reposition the lunette until it connects with the complementary hitching element on the other vehicle.